Cats Herd You

It was time to check whether the changes in Newton’s raw diet had helped his urinary pH and crystals. The last time he visited, his urinary pH was 8.0, which is well above his ideal 6.0 to 6.5 pH.

Newton: I’m looking handsome to meet all of my girlfriends today.

Because he’s a good kitty and goes before he leaves, his bladder was mostly empty, so he had to get an ultrasound for his cystocentisis urine sample.

Newton: I’m finally surrounded by admiring ladies and it’s like this?

Newton: Oh, hey, check it out, are those my insides?

What we learned was that Newton’s pH is still 8, but there are almost no crystals. The only change to his diet is that his raw diet is now made with ground eggshell powder instead of ground bone.

So what we’ve learned is he is a cat who seems to naturally have a higher urinary pH than other cats on the same diet. While his having a lower urinary pH would make him less likely to form crystals, that’s going to be harder for him than we would like. Instead, knowing that crystals are made of magnesium, ammonium, and phosphate, we reduced the amount of phosphate in his diet by changing his calcium source. Calcium from bone is calcium phosphate, and calcium from powdered eggshells is calcium carbonate.

Newton: Are you done talking in big words so I can go home now?  

Newton will have another recheck in a couple months, but he is on the right track to happier urinary health at last. That makes everyone, happy, but especially Newton himself!

Newton: While the humans are all dressing like leprechauns, around here, we celebrate St. Catrick’s Day.

Newton: I prefer to celebrate without silly accessories, but I humor the humans. Sometimes.